My daughter is turning 1 but I don't know how to shop for her food.?

Question

My fiance and I use to just eat frozen pizza's and stuff like that, but now that our daughter is eating solids we want to eat good healthy foods and set a good example for her. My only problem is that I really don't know how to shop for food at all. We have a small buget and 3 people to feed. So I was just wondering how all the other mom's and dad's do it.

Answer 1

I wish I could sit down with you. I do this for a living! I'm a healthy foods consultant for busy moms and I help mom's create shopping lists based on their budget and according to a weekly food plan. It is rather difficult to do over the net though. I usually come into the home and get a feel for the changes you want to make and what your habits currently are.

What kinds of food do you like to eat? Do you cook at all? How much are you willing to cook? These are things to consider. There are some great resources out there.

One site you might want to check out is:http://www.savingdinner.com/

The first thing is to keep it simple since your used to just popping in a frozen pizza. Find recipes you can stretch. For example, we will roast a chicken and eat it and then take the leftover meat to make chicken sandwiches or chicken noodle soup the next day. In some cases we can get three days worth of meals out of a chicken. Double your recipes. This usually doesn't cost much more and will give you leftovers for another day or you can freeze them for another time.

As for the shopping--keep staples on hand. Buy things like pasta and sauces, frozen chicken tenders (not the already processed ones but raw), cans of beans, tomatos, etc. Keep things on hand that you can throw together without much thought.

I could get into it more but then this would be a really, really long answer. Feel free to email me if you'd like more tips.

Answer 2

Go on-line or go to your doctor and ask what foods she should be eating. My 1 year old (Thursday ;) ) only has 4 teeth and so isn't ready for real solids, just highly dissolve-ables or small pieces.

I'm with you on the eating healthy thing, it's hard when all you've done for yourself is frozen/baked stuff. Look for easy kids recipes on-line or in bookstores. Cook things fresh and use a blender for her. Make if fun and you'll be more likely to eat healthy too.

Answer 3

It's really not too hard if you just make out a list before you go, you'll spend a lot less than if you just wander around the aisles. You really don't need to make anything elaborate for dinner, kids like to eat things like PB&Jelly sandwiches, chicken nuggets, hot dogs (although not til she's older), fish sticks, ham and cheese sandwiches...get the picture? Serve them with some canned green beans, corn, peas, mandarin oranges, peaches, pears or fresh fruits and veggies and you've got healthy easy meals on a budget.
If you go the canned route (cheaper) you can open a can and refridgerate the left overs to use for the next couple days too.

Answer 4

it's going to be hard just because you are going to have to change your eating habits also. Make a list of the foods that you both like including vegetables and Meats and Pastas. and shop from that. a baby that is starting solids can pretty much eat whatever you can just chew it first or use a food processor. I used to make stew cut the pieces really small, She loved Spaghetti What kid doesn't and Those are things that have good texture and are easy to make.

Answer 5

I have two little girls and the first year is easy. Beyond that it's whatever they like. We still stuck with the progressive baby foods and that but crackers, apple sauce (No Cinnamon) and that kind of stuff is usually good. Usually your pediatrician will tell you what kinds of foods to give your child. Ours gave us a can eat and can't eat list. (Based mainly on, how many teeth and age.) Keep an eye on your local grocery stores ads and sales for sales and your newspaper for coupons. Kids are expensive and they need a very specific diet but you can survive on a limited budget.

Answer 6

Your 1 year old needs protein and fiber and vitamins. Toddlers can eat alot more calories than an adult because they burn it faster. You can eat like crap forever, as long as you do right by her; you eating healthier would set a good example.
There are breakfast foods, lunch foods, and dinner foods. There are also plenty of healthy, kid friendly snack ideas.
Take a walk through your grocery store. Talk to your pediatrician, and definitely check some websites for what a 1 year old can eat.

Answer 7

i know it's very difficult to get away from old habits. But believe me our first born never ate any baby foods from day one. from the day he started eating solids. He ate whatever we used to cook but mashed it up. By 6 months he was over 12 kg and a healthy, chubby boy. Today he is 3 and weighs almost 20kg. Extremely fit and hyper active. To come to think of it, he is never lazy. We have received comments from his day care, that he never keeps still, always active and on the move and very fast /quick in learning things. Today he can operate TV, DVD player, use remote, play his games on PS, and use his VTECH computer without any difficulties and assistance.

Today, we have no difficulty in looking for special food for my kid because he is so used to eating home made food. We don't have to beg him to eat. He eats when he's ready. Never had problems feeding him. Unbelievably, his favorite is boiled broccoli with sprinkled salt.

My advise, not too late to start. Cook food at home instead of buying. this way you'll be able to feed the whole family in one expense and save $$$. It would be hard at first but nothing comes easy. Get away from those junkies, never let you child into those habit otherwise in future there would be more expenses in medical bills.

You can start off with boiled potatoes mashed in little bit of butter.
Boil paw-paw mashed in honey and salt (to taste). If you all having meat esp chicken slice the drumstick or thigh meat in very small pieces, stir fry in cholesterol free oil, add it normal noddle soup. You can also add precooked rice, mixed vegetable and an egg while the noddles are cooking. Alternatively, you can also give boiled pastes in noodles flavor. You can also add you own flavors.These are few things we used to do to start of with. All the ingredients were from our normal shopping list, not xtras.

Once again, we never fed our kid with any commercial baby food whatsoever. The only thing he hates is onion. Make sure you do fed the baby fish (pref ably fresh fish) once a week. Studies have confirmed fish eating creates smart children. It has positive impact on their intelligence.

Answer 8

I asked my doctor if it was okay to mash up what I eat in a blender and feed it to my 10 month old, and she said that was ok as long as she still gets enough formula.
My doctor also said little bits of cheese, beans and things like that are ok.
We also try to give her a banana every day and we buy a little bit of gerber, like gerber 2 and usually a jar will last one day.

So pretty much whatever you eat, as long as its chopped up or mashed or blended, is fine, even dessert as long as its every now and then.

I would jsut reccommend keeping a good eye on her so she doesnt choke.

Juice is also reccommended but with orange juice you do have to dilute it half and half at this age.

Answer 9

I understand! Just shop produce alot more. Its amazing how many fruits and veggies you can but for the money you were spending on crap! Also check and see if you have a food 4 less or other discount food store around. You may bag your own groceries but its worth the effort.

Answer 10

We are on a budget as well. I buy my 1 year old canned fruits like pears and peaches, fresh strawberries and fresh bananas. I also buy frozen peas and green beans and carrots. I stock up on cheese (sliced and shredded), tortillas (for cheese quesadillas), bread (for grilled cheese sandwiches), graham crackers, and no-salt saltines. I also get cheerios and nutrigrain breakfast bars for him. He also enjoys yogurt and jello. With milk, I usually spend about $25 a week for him as some stuff will last two weeks. Hope this helps.